Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello warms up before the team's practice Thursday at Eastwood High School as the Cardinal prepare for their Hyundai Sun Bowl appearance against Pitt. Mark Lambie / El Paso Times

Stanford wide receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside warms up before Thursday's practice at Eastwood High School as the Cardinal prepare for their Hyundai Sun Bowl appearance against Pitt. Mark Lambie / El Paso Times

The duo, who will team up in Monday's Hyundai Sun Bowl against Pitt, have emerged as one of the best receiver-quarterback tandems in the country. A Stanford team that was supposed to be run-heavy behind tailback Bryce Love has evolved into something different over the course of the season.

"Every year, every off season, coaches and players — me included — a lot of things get magnified that you did well the season before," Costello said.

"Bryce had an unbelievable season the year before — defensive coordinators across the country did an incredible job, packing the box, coming with a lot of different blitzes, hard-to-work combos from our o-line to linebackers, bringing safeties into the box, bringing corners on blitzes.

"They did a lot of things that showed they were willingly trying to stop the run. That called on me and wide receivers more often. That's part of the game of football, that's why it's so awesome. As an offensive guy I've always felt like I have an advantage if I'm willing to diagnose what the defense is doing presnap and I think we did that the majority of the year."

That started with a lot of work in the offseason as the junior Costello and the senior Arcega-Whiteside developed a rapport, one that actually began well before the summer.

"It starts off the field with school, we have a bunch of classes together, we were grinding both on and off the field," Arcega-Whiteside said. "We developed that connection that comes from working together. I have confidence that he's going to excel and that I'm going to excel, too.

"Going into the season you don't know what can happen. K.J. and I were working through the offseason, we knew there was a connection there. When our numbers were called upon a lot of good things happened. That's just a testament to the work he did on his end and the work I did on my end."

This season, Arcega-Whiteside has caught 60 passes for 969 yards and has played his way into a potential first-round pick, but for that kind of resume, he had an unusual start. He was born in Zaragza, Spain. Both of his parents were professional basketball players, and he didn't move to America until the family went to South Carolina when he was 6.

"My dad signed me up for American sports teams to make friends," Arcega-Whiteside said. "When I first got out there, I was just as confused as (his father) was. I was just running around."

He was also a star basketball player in high school in South Carolina, but by his junior year, he realized football was his ticket. Still, his basketball background shows.

"J.J. is incredible," Costello said. "He's a basketball player who has insane football skills as well. He can take it off the rim, he can stretch it vertically, he can get in front of the defense and make guys miss. He's an incredible target on the perimeter, he's an incredible target over the middle. He's everything you want in a wideout and I'm lucky to have him."

"J.J. is special in a couple of different areas," Stanford coach David Shaw said. "No. 1, he's got unbelievable ball control. Hand-eye coordination, receiving the ball, great body control. No. 2, he's extremely competitive. Great after the catch, hard to tackle, he's a big guy.

"A lot of people don't realize he's 225 pounds. He's a big guy who can run, a great downfield receiver, great in the red zone. He's a dependable guy. My favorite thing about him, he celebrates other people's plays more than his own. He loves to be a great teammate and be there for his guys."

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Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello warms up before the team's practice Thursday at Eastwood High School as the Cardinal prepare for their Hyundai Sun Bowl appearance against Pitt.(Photo: Mark Lambie / El Paso Times)

He has found a fine offensive partner in Costello, who has thrown for 3,435 yards and 29 touchdowns in his first season as a full-time starter (he won that job early a third of the way through last season).

"My goal was to be the most efficient quarterback in the country, and I think we did that in a lot of areas," Costello said.

"He has a lot of maturity and consistency," Shaw said of Costello. "That's the big thing with us, his ball location, decision-making, his leadership. Those are things that are big. He's grown a lot there, he has a lot of room to grow, but he's had a heck of a year and the sky's the limit for him."